Amazon: 300,000 Kindle 2s Sold, Up to 1 Million Expected in 2009

Amazon’s Kindle 2, which first shipped in late February, is selling at roughly double the rate of the first generation device, says a source close to Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN). Approximately 300,000 of the Kindle 2s have been shipped to date, suggesting Amazon has made over $100 million in revenue from sales of the $359 device alone this year.

The first generation device sold around 400,000 units total over its lifespan, we’ve heard, although one estimate by Citi analyst Mark Mahaney put it as high as 500,000 based on a surge in sales in Q3 2007. Amazon expects to sell 800,000 or so of the Kindle 2 devices in 2009, or double the volume of the first generation device.

Mahaney’s most recent estimates are for more than 1 million Kindle 2s to sell this year, and the current sales numbers absolutely support that, based on how the economy goes. Amazon could easily increase production to satisfy a surge in demand.

Our sources on Kindle sales have proven extremely reliable in the past. Last August we nailed the number of Kindle 1 devices sold at that time.